A JIT expression language for fast manipulation of VDB points and volumes

Abstract

Almost all modern digital content creation (DCC) applications used throughout visual effects (VFX) pipelines provide a scripting or programming interface. This useful feature gives users the freedom to create and manipulate assets in bespoke ways, providing a powerful and customizable tool for working within the software. It is particularly useful for working with geometry, a process heavily involved in modelling, effects and animation tasks. However, most widely available examples of these are either confined to their host application or ill-suited to computationally demanding operations. We have created an efficient programming interface built around the open-source geometry format, OpenVDB, to allow fast geometry manipulation whilst offering the required portability for use anywhere in the VFX pipeline.